At least six wildfires were spotted in the Bryansk region this week — the part of Russia that suffered the most from the Chernobyl catastrophe in what was then Soviet Ukraine — and fire crews quickly extinguished all of them, Emergency Situations Ministry spokeswoman Irina Yegorushkina said. Her agency also had reported sporadic wildfires last week, saying all had been put out.

Radiation experts from Moscow conducted a thorough check of the Bryansk area, which borders Belarus and Ukraine, and concluded there has been no increase in radiation levels, she said."